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Thursday, June 10, 2010

Market ... finally! (Giveaways, too)

When I decided to go to the International Quilt Market last month, I had the best of intentions. My initial plan was to blog from the show floor. Doesn't that sound cool? Cool, yes ... but realistic? Not so much.

So when that didn't really work out for me, I decided I would blog each evening about the day's events. Yeah, that didn't happen either.

Then, when my flight home from the MSP airport was delayed and I had a few hours to spare, I thought it was the perfect time to pony up the $6.95 for unlimited wifi and blog, blog, blog. But I uploaded my market photos to Flickr and caught up on LOST instead.

And when I stepped off the plane at RDU, I was almost immediately gobbled up by real life again. Work, family, kids, the sale of my house completely falling apart before my eyes (grumble, grumble) ... well, you get the idea.

So here I sit, almost 3 weeks later, writing my Quilt Market blog post. Bad, bad blogger. By now I am sure you've seen everyone else's pictures and read everyone else's recaps. To be frank, I am not sure I'll be able to bring very much to the table that you haven't seen before. But I have several other blog posts queued up in my drafts folder, so this post is the only thing standing in the way of "getting on with it".

Oh, but I do have prizes. So that's a good thing!

Let me start by sharing one of the highlights of my whole quilt market experience: meeting Amy Butler. You can go all the way back to my first post and see that Amy Butler (and, of course, her beautiful fabrics) played a big role in getting me into quilting in the first place.

Very early on the first day of market I walked right by Amy's booth. She was speaking with someone and I didn't want to seem like a geeky uber-fan, so I kept on walking. As soon as I got past I stopped myself and thought, "this is exactly why I came -- to take advantage of opportunities like this." So I turned myself around and walked back to Amy's booth. At this point Amy was all alone in the booth, straightening up some displays, so I stepped right up and introduced myself.

Amy was as warm and kind and gracious and friendly as everyone has always described her to be. I told her all about how she inspired me to start sewing and quilting (probably babbling on and on incoherently). Amy's new fabrics (Soul Blossoms) and patterns and books and wallpaper and yarn were all on display, and were just as amazing as you would expect them to be.

I was thrilled to get this picture of us and only wish the lighting was better:

PS. Yes, Amy is tall, but I'm over 6'4" myself so it was no big deal!

I snapped the following picture for Amanda (aka mrsmcporkchop). It's the mini quilt that she made from Circa 50 fabrics that was on display in the beautiful Birch Fabrics booth. Unfortunately, she was unable to make it to Minneapolis to see it in person. I was, however, able to meet the lovely Cynthia from both fabricworm and Birch Fabrics at market as well. The Birch fabrics are gorgeous and I see nothing but great things in store for Cynthia & her new fabric venture.

On a separate note, I received my bundle of Circa 50 that I won in Cynthia's giveaway last fall ... so stay tuned, because I probably won't be able to resist cutting into it for long!

Let me introduce you to one of my bestest market buddies and bloggy / Twitter pal Jennifer. Here she is in front of the quilt she designed that was on display in the Lecien booth. It's made from the sticky sweet Caramel Town line of fabrics.

More about Jennifer later.

I had to take a photo of this stunning quilt that was on display in the Robert Kaufman / Kona solids booth. It was made by Cherri House, another one of my quilting idols whose blog I've been reading practically since day 1 of my quilting adventure. I've always admired Cherri's simple yet bold & innovative designs, and her inspiring use of solids.

I was lucky enough to meet Cherri at market as well, where she was celebrating the release of her new book, City Quilts. I've had a chance to see the book and, let me tell you, it's one of the best quilting books I've seen in a LONG time. I'd put it up there with the Kerr/Ringle books, which I hold in the highest regard. This quilt is one of the patterns included in the book.

One of the most fun people at market? Sandy Klop of American Jane, for sure. Not even 5 minutes after being introduced to Sandy (thanks, Julie!), we were sharing picture of our kids (me) and grandkids (her). Sandy's just that type of person: real, genuine, sweet, and full of laughs and smiles. She was showing off her new line for Moda, Punctuation, which I can't wait to get my hands on.

Even if you haven't read all of my posts, you don't have to look much further than my blog header to know that I am a HUGE fan of Joel Dewberry. Along with Amy Butler, his fabrics really kick-started my interest in designer fabrics ... and, well, it's been downhill ever since.

I was extremely fortunate to meet Joel and chat not once, but a few times with him. Joel was a really warm, soft-spoken guy, and it was fascinating to learn that, apart from sharing a passion for creating and handmade items, we actually work in very similar fields. Besides being an amazing designer, Joel is -- quite simply -- a super nice guy. I am a fan for life.

Here is a picture of Joel giving a short talk and demonstrating a project from his new book, Sewn Spaces:

In case it hasn't come through loud & clear thus far, I had a BLAST in Minneapolis. The parties, of course, played a big role in increasing the "fun factor" of the event. The biggest bash was the Moda Fabrics party, where I got to mingle with many of my favorite designers, bloggers, and other industry folks. Here's a picture of me with some ofthe coolest girls in the room: my favorite new designer Kate Spain (I currently have both Verna and Fandango projects in the works!), Vanessa of V and Co., Angela (Moda Home Mome blogger and head Moda Bake Shop chef extraordinaire), and another of my bestest market buds, Kaye of Miss Print.

(Sorry again for the dark pic ... Vanessa has a much better one in her market recap. Oh, and Vanessa? Rest assured, I will surely shake my stuff on the dance floor next time! : )

Speaking of cool girls, they just don't come much cooler than Melissa Averinos and her PIC (partner-in-crime) Beth Dunn. I've been a big fan of them for a while now and have been semi-stalking both on Twitter since I joined a few months back. I am fairly certain they didn't know I existed before market, but I am so happy that we were introduced. I love Melissa's new book, Small Stash Sewing, and can't wait to see what she has in store for us with her upcoming new fabric line. Heck, she even convinced me to pick up the BBC version of Jane Eyre. Haven't watched it yet, but I was an English major, y'know!

Here's Kaye again (on the right) with two more of my bestest market pals. There on the left is the omnipresent Julie (aka jaybirdquilts). I cannot thank Julie enough for being my trusty guide through my first quilt market. It was Julie & Rachel that originally convinced me to book my ticket to Minneapolis,and Julie really took care of me as I learned my way around and introduced me to so many people. Thanks, Julie!

One of the people Julie introduced me to was Kari Ramsay of Fresh Cut Quilts (in the center). Kari is one of those people that makes you feel like an old friend as soon as you meet her. I also have to thank Kari for helping me get in to the infamous sample spree -- you see, tickets were all sold out by the time I arrived in Minneapolis, so for a small fee (namely some brute physical labor and using all 6'4" of my height to help set up her table), Kari let me accompany her in to the sample room. I can't thank you enough, Kari! (My wallet, however, might feel otherwise.)

This picture is of the three of us at Lizzy House's CAKE PARTY (!) in honor of the release of her mom Cherri's book:

The night before I left Minneapolis, I had dinner with Jennifer & Kaye at an awesome burger place called Ike's (highly recommended if you're visiting the area. Thanks for the recommendation, Angela!) By this point, Jennifer, Kaye and I had gotten pretty tight -- tight enough, anyway, that I allowed Jennifer to call me "Q Daddy". They were awesome market floor friends -- we walked much of the show together each day. Jennifer has even indicated that she is designing some "Quilt Dad is my Homeboy" t-shirts -- let her know if you want to place a pre-order -- and I had come to calling them my "Fly Girls". Too funny.

After dinner, the three of us trekked to the Mall of America. I just couldn't leave Minneapolis without experiencing it.

Finally, I wanted to show some of the books I was able to get at market. Each of these is actually autographed by the authors themselves! Pretty rad, huh?

In closing, quilt market was an AMAZING experience and exceeded all of my expectations. I am just so, so happy that I took Rachel & Julie's advice, took the plunge, and jumped right in.

(I have a ton of photos to share that simply wouldn't fit in this post -- take a look at my Flickr album for more.)

I am not sure if circumstances (job, family, finances, etc. etc.) will allow me to go to Houston in the fall, but I am sure going to try my hardest to be there.

--

OK, and now for the giveaways. Have you guys heard about the newest addition to Moda's line of pre-cut fabrics? These little guys are called "candy bars", and measure 2.5" x 5". Kind of like if a charm pack and a jelly roll had a baby.

My first winner will receive two candy bars of the new "Lollipop" line by Sandy Gervais:

And my second winner will receive three candy bars of "Happy", by Me & My Sister Designs (who I also had the distinct pleasure of meeting!):

Both winners will also be getting one of these cool little notepads with fabric designs on the cover. The one on the left is from Anna Maria Horner, and the one on the right is from Melissa Averinos. Melissa signed the one in the front, but I'll be keeping that one!

Sound good? If you want some candy bars, just leave me a comment below. Ask me a question -- anything you want to know about me. (Keep it clean, folks!) I'll try to answer some of the better questions in a future post. I'll leave the contest open until next Friday, June 18th, when I will randomly pick two winners.

I don't know any questions :( But thank you for quilting, I've used you and Joel Dewberry both as support when coworkers tell me it's so repressive and patriarchal subjugation and all that for me to sew things. And I'm teaching my husband, too!

Here's a question: are you teaching your kids to quilt? Does your wife quilt?

O my - those candy bars are adorable! I'm a relatively new follower of your blog but have thoroughly enjoyed going back and looking through previous posts to "catch up."

As the proud mama of two wee ones (2 and 4) I have to ask: how do you find/create time to balance work and play? I find it a constant struggle and am in awe of people like you who seem to be uber-productive in their quilting/sewing life as well as having a family, job, and responsibilities beyond the sewing machine.

Okay, so there is one question I have been wondering about for quite some time: how do you manage everything. I mean, being a parent is hard, working at the same time is harder, but then you are quilting and blogging about it and I don't suppose that you let your wife do everything on her own around the house. Do you not sleep at night (because that would totally explain it)? Do you have some organization secret or maybe you can quilt, cut, sew, iron, read to your kids, and do household chores at the same time?I would really really like to know!

well thanks for the chance to win one of these goodies. I have to say you and Joel Dewberry look like you could be brothers I almost thought it was you holding the pillow at first. So how did you first get introduced to moda bake shop? Did you submit a design or did they come find you? Just ask Julie, I like to know how the people who's blogs I read daily got their start.

Your description of quilt market makes it sound wonderful. Until blogging I was a basically isolated and mostly closet quilter. I am getting out in the world a little, but it is scary to put yourself out there. What gave you the "push" to just do it? I have ideas, but doesn't everyone....

Quilt Market sounds like heaven! I'd be standing there with my mouth open staring at all the people I read about in blogland. If you need someone to carry your bags next time, let me know. I'm positive I can arrainge my schedule and be available. Hey, maybe I should try to hire myself out to someone........that would be one way to get there!!

OOooooooh!!! You make me want to go to market. Is it open to anyone (like a quilt show) or do you need an 'in'? I think you met most of my 'quilt heros'. So cool! Thanks for all the pictures, feel free to post more.

Those are great giveaways! Thanks for the opportunity. My question is this, what does your wife think of your blogging and quilting? Does she tease you about your blog (like my husband teases me?--I think he "gets" it but enjoyes the teasing).

Great post and great giveaways! My question is, on average how much time do you spend sewing per day? Is there a day in particular that is your "sewing day"? Sundays are my sewing day. Its the one day of the week that I can pretty much have to myself for sewing.

I love candy bars--and these candy bars have No calories:) How old were you when you learned to sew? Were you always interested in sewing or is it something that just appealed to you in the last few years?

Wow, those candy bars look like fun! How do you find the time to do it all? I'm struggling with working full-time, getting a second master's degree (FT too), training for a marathon while raising $3500 for charity and the other committments in my life. And I don't have kids like you do.

Holy junk, majorly jealous over all the sights you got to see and people you got to meet!I'm curious as to your creative process - are you generally a designer who finds fabrics to suit your design, or do you let the fabric tell you what it wants to be? (I'm the strange latter type :) )

Well, you may be slow on the take when it comes to posting about market, but you get the award for being the first to tell me about candy bars! I've been a bit distant with technology since school got out so I haven't seen these cute little bits of fabric, but I love them!!

So yesterday I bought everything I need to start my first quilt... Much like you were inspired by Amy Butler to start quilting, I was inspired by you! So thanks a bunch! I really appreciate it :D and I look forward to seeing many more of your fantabulous creations!:)

Okay... so, I knew that Kari got you in... HOW? you ask. Well, I ran into her at the local quilt shop and asked her how things were going. She tells me she roomed with Jaybird (love her blog) and then I started rambling off others I follow. I asked if she ran into quilt dad - yep! Then she told me how she scored you a pass. How lucky!! Well, it's a small world after all. I have known Kari since she worked at the local shop and lives within 10 miles of me NOW... I'll live closer to you in a few weeks. I'm moving back to SC. So, maybe I'll run into you back east. You'll have to give me the scoop on things in the Carolinas. I do love to follow your blog... keep the post a comin'.

oh what a cool giveaway! I am new to quilting so my question to you is how do you decide what fabrics to use together or what quilt pattern would look good with your fabrics, I find myself getting paralyzed with indecision. Thanks!

Yum!! Finally a candy bar that won't go to my hips!! I would LOVE to win one!! Thanks so much for the chance to win!Your Questions- At what age did you start quilting? Did you take a Home Economics class? How did you start sewing? I know that's more than one...but they are really interrelated...sort of!!Thanks!Paulette

Thank you for your post. It was a different view on the show. More of a "normal" geeked out fabric loving person view. I went to Quilt Market in Penn. a yr. ago and I stood in a spot waiting for Heather Bailey (for like 45 min.) to finish talking to someone. Yeah you can put a big "L" on my forehead!! :)

Great giveaway! I think this is a fun size & am looking forward to creating some projects with some candy bars (especially these!) I would like to know what is your favorite quilt that you've created & why?

What a thrill to get to meet and hang out with all these wonderfully inspiring people at Market! I'm so happy to read about your opportunities. I have not made anything using candy bar packs yet; have you?

Again, not throwing my name in the hat, but I just wanted to say... hey look, there's me (three times)! I had such a blast with you John - I can't think of anyone better to have hung out with at my first Market (and Jennifer too of course) - so much "newbie" fun!

I'm in the same boat as you for Houston, but I'm sure going to try my hardest to get there!

Oooh...I like candy bars...especially ones named Happy!!!! ;) how fun!

Here's my question: if your house was on fire, which quilt would you grab on your way out?!!! So I guess what I really want to know is which one is your most favorite and why? (but perhaps you wouldn't grab your favorite...)

I loved reading your market report! For some reason I had no idea you were so tall! No wonder you do most of your work by machine -- getting a tiny needle into big hands is a challenge (can be done, tho--saw John Flynn sewing with a #10 Between once:).

Great market post! Looks like a total blast. OK, my question, since quilt market is just for those in the quilt business: How does one begin to transition from quilt-love as a hobby to quilt-love as a business? Thanks for the rockin' giveaway!

John, You came all the way to Minneapolis and you didn't stop to see me? (just kidding!) Although it would have been a treat to meet you. I'm glad you had fun, aren't quilters the sweetest people! How ever did you get a chance to go to quilt market? What a outstanding opportunity.

Wow we don't have anything like that here in Australia but I hope to make it to Houston or Paducah one day. My questions would be which one would YOU prefer out of Houston or Paducah, even if you have never been.

here's my question: how's the puppy? (I saw pics on twitter weeks ago)despite my best efforts, my dog always manages to get her nose into my scrap bin, so I find little bits of fabric all over the house!

How do you decide what fabrics you are going to purchase? Do you have a project and purchase for the project or purchase fabric and then decide what design you will use it in? If you are not purchasing for a particular design, how much fabric do you usually purchase? Do you generally purchase each fabric in a line or just the ones that you like? Sorry for all the questions -- can you tell that I am an attorney?! Was so glad to see your post tonight -- you've been missed!

Dude, it was great meeting you at Market....and don't worry I still have posts in MY queue about Market!! LOL!! Loved your take...Next year Salt Lake...I am going to go to dinner with you and the fly girls!! :)

What a great giveaway !!is fantastic you got to the market! I hope be there some day and my bad english don't be a problem to meet people! My question is what is your dreaming sewing machine?thanks for the chance and gretings from México!

I have had my eyes on 'Happy' for a couple months since I saw a sneak peek. I'd love to give a home to those candy bars!

My question...How do people react when they find out you quilt? I had a guy friend who quilted, but didn't really tell people due to reactions from others. Would be interested to hear about your experience with it.

Looks like you had a lot of fun at market!Candy bars without all the calories sounds great, so I would love the chance to win some:-)My question to you is:What kind of machine are you sewing on? I would love to know, as I am a geek for sewingmachines of all kind:-)Have a nice weekend!Hugs from Synnoeve in Norway.

Do your kids quilt too? Have they expressed an interest? My 5yo daughter wants SO badly to learn to sew, and I've let her "make" a few pillowcases and things. I'm so excited that this could be something we could share over the years!

Thanks so much for all your sharing! It was very interesting to read!I would like to know what is your biggest inspiration for creating a quilt.Have a great time and thanks for sharing those absolutely great candy bars!

Thank you for your lovely trip through the market!My question: doesn't it sometimes feel strange, to be amongst all those woman during such a market and do they treat you like an equal or with more respect?

I wish I could go to the Market one day, but it is a really long way from Germany ( and probably way too expensive for me). My question is: Do you ever get mocked by your male friends for sewing and quilting? I hope not because it is really cool!

Love those new candy bars. And my question is: would you mind helping me put away the shopping - I've done a huge shop as we have all the usuals in our house plus the in-laws this weekend. I'm supposed to be putting it away now but I got sidetracked by the computer and the pincushion I'm making for the Flickr scrappy pincushion swap. So if you have a moment to help unpack the shopping, that would be great!

I don't know how you find the time to quilt, let alone blog, while working full time and raising three kids! I guess that's my question. Bravo to you for your energy and creativity. Count me in for the giveaway.

My Question: Would you share pictures of your crafting areas with us? I'm always fascinated by how other people do their craft areas. Probably because mine are in totally separate areas of my house LOL.!And I'm with Margaret. I'm a stay at home mom with 4-6 depending on the day and *I* rarely have time to quilt!

What a fantastic post - you really do inspire. I've only recently started my first quilt top, and I'm hooked, but I just can't seem to find the time. How on earth do you fit it in? Do you just quilt - I guess I sew other things as well, so maybe that doesn't help. But fitting it in around the children (I have three) is hard.Found you via Melissa on Twitter. Lovely to read about you meeting.

I would like to know where you get your inspiration for the things that you make? I am often drawn to the bold fabrics but the things I make often seem to busy when finished. How do you deal with large scale motifs, while still preserving the beauty of the design?

Me & My sister make the most wonderful designs. I would love to win the their candy bars. Tell me what inspiration will you be using for your next quilt?By the way I have a Kaffe Fasset fat quarter give away on my blog at the moment. Why not come over and say "Hi"? (http://sewjournal.com)Munaiba

Wow..what an awesome good time you had! I'd like to enter your give-away. My question is...I see you're originally from Brooklyn, so are you a Yankee or a Mets fan? There is only 1 right answer to that question..lolSmiles, DianeM :)

I have been asking a few crafters this question - how do you find the time to do crafting in the busyness of life and work. Lately I have not getting any finishes even though I have a few waiting to be binded, basted, to be cut.

I love the quilt market posts no matter when they get posted! Everyone's got a slightly different take and had a different experience, so I love hearing them all! My question: how did you get in? I'd love to go some day, but I thought you had to have a shop or be a manufacturer. Do tell!!

Those lollipops are great! What's the one fabric that you keep coming back to in your stash? I have a brown diamond pattern that I use a lot that I love. It pops up in a lot of my projects as a neutral/ accent.

Hi John, It was actually nice to see a 'post' post and refresh all the market excitement. I would love to win some candy bars!! My questions is: what got you interested in quilting, and were you afraid/did you even care if people would assume you must be gay?